In November 2024, the Army Museum in Białystok unveiled an impressive historical treasure: a Viking-era sword, dated between the 9th and 10th centuries. This exceptional discovery was made by a museum employee, Szczepan Skibicki, during a dive in the Supraśl River in the Podlachia region of Poland in the summer of 2022. The sword, accompanied […]
Medieval Archaeology
Some of the key areas excavated and analyzed by medieval archaeologists include villages and farmsteads, noble or royal manors, monastic sites, pilgrimage churches, castles and fortifications. By investigating everything from pots and pans to palaces, medieval archaeology helps shed light on changes in technology, economy, trade, dietary practices, craft industries and more during this diverse historical epoch.
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
A Monumental Byzantine Basilica Built by Justinian, Found in the Ancient Roman City of Aquileia
Aquileia, a small town in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region in northeastern Italy, is now a modest place with barely 3,000 inhabitants. However, its past is among the richest and most significant in ancient history. Founded in 181 B.C. as a Roman military colony, Aquileia became an important economic center of the Roman Empire. Its strategic […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
Decline of the Eastern Roman Empire Was Not Caused by Plagues and Climate Change in 6th Century AD, But Rather Experienced a Population Boom
A recent study published in the journal Klio by researchers Haggai Olshanetsky, from the University of Warsaw, and Lev Cosijns, from the University of Oxford, analyzes the true causes of the decline of the Eastern Roman Empire. Traditionally, it has been believed that natural factors, such as the Late Antique Little Ice Age (LALIA) and […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
The Site of the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah, which in 637 CE Pitted the Arabs against the Sassanian Empire and Was Key in the Expansion of Islam, Has Been Discovered
A team of archaeologists led by Dr. William Deadman from the Department of Archaeology at Durham University has successfully pinpointed the site of the historic Battle of al-Qadisiyyah. This battle, which took place between 637 and 638 CE, is known as a key confrontation in the expansion of Islam beyond the Arabian Peninsula, culminating in […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
A Man Thrown Into a Well 900 Years Ago, Identified and Linked to Viking Sagas
Archaeology and genetics have come together in a fascinating investigation into a skeleton discovered in the well of Sverresborg Castle, Norway, in 1938. The remains, which were recovered in 2016, had already confirmed the story told by Viking sagas as we reviewed then in our Spanish edition. Now, information about the man’s identity has been […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
Archaeologists Are Not Finding Late Roman and Anglo-Saxon Burials from the 5th Century in England – Where Are the Bodies?
A recent archaeological study explores an enigmatic question about the “missing” dead of the 5th century in Britain. A team of researchers, led by Emma Brownlee of the University of Cambridge and Alison Klevnäs of Uppsala University, has proposed a novel hypothesis: many bodies from this era may have been disposed of through methods that […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
A woman buried with a Viking wagon, an iron key, and a silver-handled knife, along with 50 other graves found in Denmark
A team of archaeologists from the Odense Museum has unearthed more than 50 exceptionally well-preserved skeletons in Åsum, east of Odense, Denmark. These remains, accompanied by artifacts from distant places beyond the Danish borders, confirm that the Vikings traveled extensively for trade. Over the past six months, archaeologists have discovered more than 50 Viking graves […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
Remains of the Seljuk Headquarters Found at the Battlefield of Manzikert, Where They Defeated the Byzantines in 1071
Archaeological excavations at the historic Battle of Manzikert battlefield (modern-day Malazgirt in Turkey), where the Seljuks defeated the Byzantine Empire in 1071, opening the gates of Anatolia, continue to reveal important discoveries. The project, which began in 2020 with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, is advancing into its second phase in 2024. […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology, Medieval Archaeology
Man discovered a skeleton in his basement and found 38 Late Antique tombs and 10 Merovingian sarcophagi
During the winter of 2023-2024, a team of archaeologists conducted an excavation in the basement of a house in the Montconseil neighborhood of Corbeil-Essonnes (Île-de-France). This operation was prescribed by the Regional Archaeology Service and was carried out after the accidental discovery of a skeleton while the homeowner was doing renovation work in his basement. […]
Posted inMedieval Archaeology
A Large Byzantine Pilgrimage Hostel Complex Found in the Ancient City of Nessana in the Negev Desert
A team of researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is conducting excavations at the Nessana site, located in the southwestern Negev desert on the border between Israel and Egypt. This settlement, which reached its peak during the Byzantine and early Islamic periods (6th-7th centuries AD), has become a focal point for archaeologists seeking to […]
